Common Problems With Wooden Closet Doors

Common Problems With Wooden Closet Doors

Closet doors are used to make your wardrobe a safe place for securing your accessories. These are sliding, hinged and bi-fold types depending on the length and type of the cupboard.

Common problems with wooden closet doors include sliding issues, jamming, loose handles or hinges, bent tracks, sagging doors, and faulty magnetic catches and locks.

It is essential to inspect their problems regularly because insects and dust accumulate in your closets when these are not closed properly.

Problems with wooden closet doors Solutions
Come out of track Clean the track with a brush or vacuum cleaner
Problem with opening and closing Realign the sliding tracks
Issues with hinges and sagging Lubricate the hinges and fasten their screws
An issue with wheels and loose handles Clean the wheels and tighten the loose handles
Bent track Reshape with hammer and pliers
Magnetic catch not working Avoid frequent opening and closing
Faulty lock Use correct key

Come out of track

The sliding closet doors are coming out of the track due to hindrance on the sliding rails. In addition, the presence of small foreign particles or dust causes skipping issues.

Sometimes dust accumulates in these hidden parts and restricts movement. In addition, the food crumbs also come in these places when you are using the closets to store food.

Sometimes the tiny beads, pearls, and buttons fall in these tracks and cause issues in a smooth movement.

You can face sticking and skipping because of these foreign particles. You can fix it by clearing the sliding path and removing dust and dirt.

Take a small brush to remove the dust and other small particles. You can also vacuum the area for better results and proper cleaning.

Problem with opening and closing

Sometimes the sliding and hinged closet doors are stuck in their place, and it becomes difficult to open and close them because of their poor alignment.

The alignment issues come when the upper part of the sliding rail becomes loose. In addition, the poor alignment problem comes in sliding doors when the track is present on the upper side only.

You cannot properly close the doors that are leaning towards the floor. These are made up of wooden material that contacts and expands according to fluctuations in weather.

The contraction and expansion increase or decrease their sizes, leading to poor adjustment. It is better to install the sliding track on the lower side for better fastening and smooth movement.

You can resize the wooden material by sanding its surface with an electric sander for proper alignment.

Issues with hinges and sagging 

The hinged wooden closet doors are at more risk of sagging due to loose screws and bolts. The doors start to lean towards the floor from one side.

The sagging causes an issue in their alignment, and you cannot close them properly. In addition, over time, the hinges become loose because of their screws and bolts.

The screws of the hinges also become loose due to frequent opening and closing. Moreover, you can hear the squeaking noise while opening your wardrobes.

The noise comes due to poor fastening of the joining ends. In addition, the poor lubrication produces a creaking noise when you open them.

You cannot open them smoothly and face the rattling issues. However, you can fix the issues by realigning them at their specific location.

Lubricate the hinges with high-quality lubrication for smooth movement. You can also drill the new holes to secure the hinge plates and screws if the pre-existing holes become bigger.

You can also use toothpicks to adjust the screws in these larger holes, but it is not a permanent solution.

Issue with wheels and loose handles 

The sliding closet doors contain wheels to move on the tracks smoothly. The wheels cannot move when there is wear and tear in them.

In addition, suddenly, wheels also come out of track when you open or close the wardrobes. These are plastic and metal types but at risk of wear and tear.

The plastic types can break easily when something hard is on track. Moreover, frequent use also produces cracks in them.

Wheels get jammed when hairs or other small particles of dirt and crayons restrict their movement.

The cracked wheels become abrasive and more friction between them and the track cause problem. Stunning handles of different colors, shapes, and designs are present on closet doors for easy opening and closing.

The handles also break when you hang something heavy with them. The handles start to sag due to loose joints and their poor attachment.

It is essential to change them when they are broken. Moreover, you can also lubricate the metal ones to reduce friction and for their smooth movement.

Remove the wheels and clean out the debris from them. Fasten the handles properly with screws and prevent them from sagging.

Avoid hanging your clothes and heavy coats on the handles of the doors.

Bent track

The track issues come with sliding-type wooden closet doors. The tracks are made up of metal material which can bend when you put little pressure on them.

The metal sliders bend when you close them with pressure or when you exert force on their surface. The bent tracks also lead to rough movement and uneven noises.

The issue comes when some harsh particle gets stuck on these rails, and you try to move the doors on them hard.

The pressure during this process disturbs the original integrity of the metal material. You can fix the issue with pliers to restore their original shape.

Pliers help remove the inward bents of metal tracks. You can also use the mallet, hammer, and a small piece of wood to straighten the bent area.

Place the small wood piece on the bent area and tap it with a hammer or rubber mallet.

The magnetic catch is not working

The magnetic catchers are on the side of the walls, and magnetic plates are on the side of the doors.

These magnetic catchers are helpful in closing the wooden closet doors perfectly. Proper fastening prevents the clothes and other accessories from falling on the floor.

The magnetic catchers become faulty, and you cannot correctly close the hinged doors. In addition, these magnetic plates lose their strength when they become old.

In addition, the frequent opening and closing also desensitize the magnetic material and reduce the pulling force between them.

People often overfill their wardrobes with clothes and other accessories that pressure the magnetic catchers.

It is better to change these magnetic plates when they lose their strength to open and close doors properly.

Avoid opening them frequently because magnetic material loses its strength. Instead, remove the dust from these plates with a dry cloth for their accurate fastening.

Faulty locks

The locks on the closet doors make your accessories more secure and increase your privacy.

The locks become faulty, and you cannot lock them properly. These become faulty due to the failure of the key and lock mechanism due to aging.

Moreover, the issue comes due to the accumulation of corrosion on metal keyholes. Sometimes people forget to wrap the locking area during the painting procedure.

Tiny drops of paint enter these holes and block them. As a result, you cannot move your key and face problems in locking and unlocking.

Many people put the keys inside keyholes with heavy keychains that can destroy their functioning. In addition, the use of the wrong and corroded key makes the lock faulty.

Many of these locks are on the side and mounted on the inner side of the wall. These types of locks become faulty when you close and open the doors hardly.

You can fix the issue with the wooden closet doors by using the correct key for opening and closing the locks. Remove the key after opening the lock to reduce the weight.

Open it carefully and do not push them hard because it can make the locks faulty.

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